An American flag with President Barack Obama’s image in place of the stars has been flying over a Florida county’s Democrat headquarters. This ObamaNation flag is the perfect symbol for the modern Democrat / Progressive Party. Their goal is to replace the original Federalist balance between the individual states and federal government with a centralized, nationalized, fascistic, god-state headed by an iconic cult of personality Strong-man leader/dictator. It’s just who they are.

These ObamaNation flags have been flying since 2008 (see http://alobama.wordpress.com/), so why has it taken American Veterans so long to object to the altered banner being in violation of the United States Flag Code. Where have the Vets been since 2008? Sleeping like Rip Van Winkle?

More Proof This is NOT Your Grandmother’s America! At the exact same time that President Obama dismissed the Revolutionary War heritage of America, he was praising with uplifted voice the “timeless heritage” of Russia.

It seems that the current American President has officially snubbed the women of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (The DAR) at their yearly convention in Washington, D.C., appropriately named “Continental Congress.” Tradionally, American Presidents send greetings to the respected, non-political woman’s organization, either in person or via written or video address. This year, 2009, the stunned audience of descendants of Revolutionary War Patriots sat in silence awaiting a message from their President, for whom many of the women had voted.

The lineage society, whose motto is “God, Home and Country,” accepts women who can prove direct descent from a patriot of the American Revolution regardless of race, religion or ethnic background. This year, civil rights legend Dr. Dorothy Irene Height was awarded the DAR’s highest recognition, the DAR Medal of Honor, for her lifetime of service, leadership and patriotism.

Other events highlighted during Continental Congress were:

Founders Medals for Patriotism, Education, Heroism, and Youth

Americanism Award

Outstanding Veteran-Patient of the Year

Outstanding Youth Volunteer of the Year

Dr. Anita Newcomb McGee Award for the Army Nurse of the Year

Margaret Cochran Corbin Award for distinguished women in military service

Outstanding Teacher of American History

Outstanding Community Service Award

During 2008-2009, which included Barack Obama’s tenure as America’s President, women of the DAR volunteered more than 60,000 hours to veteran patients, awarded over $150,000 in scholarships to American students, and supported schools for the underprivileged with donations exceeding one million dollars.

While President Obama deemed that the women of the DAR were not worthy of their nation’s gratitude, he did address, in person, the 2009 graduating class of the New Economic School at Gostinny Dvor in Russia on July 7, 2009, during the exact time that the Daughters of the American Revolution were in Washington remembering America’s “heritage” and the sacrifices of their patriotic ancestors of the Revolution. Obama spoke to the Russians of their “heritage,” with these exact words from The White House Official Web Site:

I speak to you today with deep respect for Russia’s timeless heritage. Russian writers have helped us understand the complexity of the human experience, and recognize eternal truths. Russian painters, composers, and dancers have introduced us to new forms of beauty. Russian scientists have cured disease, sought new frontiers of progress, and helped us go to space.

These are contributions that are not contained by Russia’s borders, as vast as those borders are. Indeed, Russia’s heritage has touched every corner of the world, and speaks to the humanity that we share. That includes my own country, which has been blessed with Russian immigrants for decades; we’ve been enriched by Russian culture, and enhanced by Russian cooperation. And as a resident of Washington, D.C., I continue to benefit from the contributions of Russians — specifically, from Alexander Ovechkin. We’re very pleased to have him in Washington, D.C.

UPDATE: The official statement from Linda Gist Calvin, President General of the NSDAR, graciously states “Rumors have been circulating suggesting that the absence of greetings was an intentional slight on the part of the President. Your President General is sure this is not the case. … Greetings from the White House to the DAR Continental Congress actually did not begin until 1910. There have also been more than a dozen years since that time in which greetings were not forthcoming. Regardless, please be assured that the DAR will continue to foster relationships with those in the White House and share our objectives of historic preservation, education and patriotism.”

“From now until the end of the world, we and it shall be remembered. We few, we Band of Brothers. For he who sheds his blood with me shall be my brother.” ~~ William Shakespeare in “King Henry V”

Where Will You Be On Saint Crispen’s Day?

Open your Shakespeare to Henry V, Act IV, Scene 3, where the king, at battle’s eve, rallies his “band of brothers.” The most stirring call to arms in the English language was written in 1599, in that scene when the king inspired his men, his warriors, to fight valiantly as brothers-in-arms. (Link to Audio)

The methods of warfare have evolved somewhat since that time, but the character and brotherhood of soldiers remains much the same as it was 400 years ago, in the time of William Shakespeare. Today’s war is a global war and it is not fought solely on the battlefield. The conflict we face seems different from any that we have fought before. Skills and talents are needed other than the traditional ones possessed by soldiers. In this war, civilians on the home front or abroad can be warriors for the right. We watch with our eyes and write with our computers. We can disseminate local news and we can be creative with the new technologies that are now available. This World War III is a battle where the main weaponry is information and technology and skills and ingenuity are needed in these fields. If you cannot be a soldier in a uniform, your talents are still valued. We can all be citizen soldiers as we contribute our skills toward this terrible war.

The poetry of William Shakespeare is a great legacy handed down to us from our cultural forebears. Cherish it. Read the Bard’s immortal lines about war and understand our warriors, and think about what you can do to contribute to the war effort, instead of relying upon our soldiers to do all of the fighting.

All can be soldiers, in or out of uniform. Those who heed not the call to arms today will rue the victory, as they will not be able to recount to their children and grandchildren that they fought in those long ago days and saved civilization from a dreadful darkness. When they are old men and women, today’s soldiers will say with pride that they fought evil and won a great victory.

And gentlemen in England now abed, Shall think themselves accursed they were not here, And hold their manhood’s cheap whiles any speaks, That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day. ~~William Shakespeare “King Henry V”

As we edge ever closer to Canada’s Remembrance Day 2006, I take it upon myself to remember Canada’s Vietnam Veterans, as, if history is any kind of a teacher, Canada will give them not a crumb of respect for their service. This post was made at “Blatherings” on 10 February 2005:

It was like we came home as thieves in the night

Recently there was a snarky dialogue between the CBC’s Bob McKeown and Ann Coulter on a state sponsored television show called the The Fifth Estate. American Coulter reminded the Canadians of something they refuse to acknowledge; that their young citizens had served with the U.S. in Vietnam. Canadian bloggers have gone ballistic and attacked her as a liar and worse and have even attacked and disrespected the Canadian soldiers who fought in their behalf, against Communism. At Blogs Canada E-group there was the following comment from one of those “morally superior” Canadians: “Plus if I’m not mistaken, most of those thousands of Canadians were Aboriginals who signed up after being given a fantasyland pitch by US military recruiters.” made by Robert McClellan. Sounds to me like those tiresome “morally superior than the U.S.” Canadians do not consider that “Aboriginals” could even count as Canadians, much less Canadian troops.

As here in the US, at this very moment, we have brave young soldiers willing to sacrifice their lives to keep us (and Canada) free, I find such comments extremely offensive. As Americans, let us never see our battle weary soldiers return home as thieves in the night. I think Canada should be ashamed.

Dennis Thomson was twenty-one years old when he boarded a bus in Hamilton, Ontario to cross the international border at Buffalo and join the United States military. This was at the same time that thousands of American draft-dodgers and deserters were going north into Canada and being welcomed as heroes. However, most Americans viewed the border crossings a bit differently, as an old grizzled Marine said; “we sent them our worst and they sent us their best.”

“Thomson served two tours of duty as a combat medic in Vietnam, one in 1968 during the Tet Offensive and another in 1971. Between tours, he served in a med-evac hospital in Japan.

He has two answers for why he went to Vietnam. “Why not?” and more seriously, because he could not allow himself to sit back and let somebody else go instead.

He reaches back into his memory and recites an old Indian proverb: “We do not for ourselves alone, but die for others.”

“There’s a certain percentage of men who have the call, the call for freedom,” he says, “and that’s a good enough reason for anyone to do this.”

After the war, Dennis Thomson returned to Canada to live. On Memorial Day, 1999, he visited the Vietnam Memorial in Washington D.C. for the third time to read some of the 58,000 names etched there. He and some others placed small Maple Leaf flags along the walls where the names of Canadians appear. He said “This is the American way of saying, ‘lest we forget‘.” He said that despite all the medals and ribbons awarded, none of the Canadian Vietnam veterans ever received any official recognition of their service from either the Canadian or U.S. government. “We never got a parade when we got home all we had was our brothers,” he said. “It was like we came home as thieves in the night“.Canadian Hawks Fly South

This video from January of 2005, is at the heart of my postings on Canada and her disgraceful shunning of her own Vietnam veterans. The video is of Ann Coulter being interviewed on Canada’s Public Television by Bob McKeown:

Regarding the McKeown/Coulter exchange at the heart of my posts, at first glance, a fair-minded person would say that both McKeown and Coulter were correct. Ann Coulter said “Canada sent troops to Vietnam,” which was certainly true in 1973, although she was probably thinking of the tens of thousands of Canadians who everyone knows were in service with American forces during the Vietnam era. Bob McKeown said “Canada didn’t send troops to Vietnam.” and if he was meaning the government of Canada, he would have been correct also.

However …. neither McKeown nor Coulter specified “the Canadian government.” Although Ann Coulter never backed away from her original statement, although she may not have known the circumstances of the Canadian troops being in Vietnam, Canadian journalist Bob McKeown embellished his statement, saying that “Canada … took a pass on Vietnam,” a statement that cannot be accepted by any fair-minded person.

A polite person could say that Canadian journalist Bob McKeown was ignorant of Canadian history. A more realistic person would say that Bob McKeown, spokesman of the Canadian government’s CBC, was misleading the Canadian people by rewriting history.

As for Ann Coulter, she is not a Canadian and she has never claimed to be a student of Canadian history. She was stating what she believed to be true … and guess what, it was. As for Bob McKeown, and other ignorant Canadians who have condemned Ms. Coulter, they need to become more aware of just what their country was all about during the Vietnam era.

I originally made this post on 9 February 2005 at “Blatherings”. It is repeated here because of new interest in the subject and to remind Canadians of their “other” veterans that they do not include in their upcoming Remembrance Day in November.

O Canada, we stood on guard for thee.

Recently, an American pundit, Ann Coulter, has been ridiculed for believing that there were Canadian troops in Vietnam. Why does she think they were there? Because they were there, as the image above demonstrates. The soldiers in battle proudly posted the ensign of their beloved land. However, their country, Canada, does not return that respect.

Tens of thousands of Canadians crossed the border to join up with the American military during the era of the Vietnam War. Over one hundred Canadians lost their lives in battle. One Canadian won the Congressional Medal of Honor. Today, Canada points with pride to the fact that they welcomed with open arms, America’s military deserters and draft evaders, yet they do not acknowledge their own citizens who fought against the evils of communism during the Cold War.

It seems the present Canadian government is attempting to rewrite the history of their country’s involvement in the Vietnam War. Recently, Ms. Coulter, on a government supported Canadian broadcast, lauded the Canadian troops that fought in that war. She was rudely slapped down and told that she was wrong. The host, Bob McKeown, an employee of the government controlled Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) told her and his viewers that Canada “took a pass on Vietnam”.

I posted previously about the veterans’ case, “Disabled Veterans,” argued last spring by Mr. James R. Barney, of Finnegan Henderson, Washington DC, BARRETT v. DVA. According to Mr. Barney, as of 11 October 2006, the case has been decided and it is a very good result for the veteran. Perhaps it is not such a good result for the American taxpayers, and for that they can thank former President George H.W. Bush.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has reversed and remanded the Veterans Court’s decision in Barrett v. DVA, which was handled pro bono by the Finnegan Henderson Law Firm at oral argument. This is an important veterans decision that significantly and positively affects the rights of veterans who are appealing adverse decisions from the Board of Veterans Appeals. In short, Mr. Barrett was seeking to establish equitable tolling based on mental incapacity in order to preserve his appeal, which had been dismissed for failure to timely file his NOA. He asked the Veterans Administration to provide a psychiatric examination to help him establish the strict criteria for proving equitable tolling. The VA refused to provide an examination, arguing that it had no duty to assist the veteran once his case was on appeal. The veteran appealed that decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

The ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, authored by Judge MAYER, is quite broad and will likely have an immediate and beneficial impact on mentally ill veterans, of whom there are many, who find themselves caught between the non-adversarial and adversarial systems of the appeals process. The following quote sums up the ruling:

“Here Barrett specifically requested a medical examination by DVA doctors to clarify the nature of his mental incapacity during the appeals period. Because such an exam will plainly assist in clarifying his entitlement to equitable tolling, is consistent with the kinds of evidence uniquely within the knowledge and competence of the government . . ., and ensure the reality and appearance of systemic fairness, the Secretary shall provide Barrett with his requested medical examination, as well as any other assistance deemed reasonably necessary by the Veterans Court.”

2005 to date, by Kerfuffles.
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